Bands in the Sands @ Chesapeake Foundation Headquarters

Bands in the Sands @ Chesapeake Foundation Headquarters

Challenge:
With an entire concert setup on sand in Annapolis Maryland the challenges are obvious. First, an all sand setup resulted in a particularly challenging load in requiring a plywood road and, in some circumstances, extremely long case pushes. Second, limited visibility during this night-time concert meant that RCI Systems needed to provide event lighting to several stations along the beach. Finally, in an attempt to remain energy efficient, the client requested “green” and energy efficient lighting solutions.

RCI Solution:
The first challenge to this setup was placing the stage, which was a Stage Line SL 150. By laying out plywood roads and utilizing a tractor to tow, the SL 150 was carefully maneuvered into place. Utilizing the same plywood roads, RCI was able to get their trucks down to the beach and within 100 yards of the stage. Traversing the remaining distance required hard work and good old fashion sweat! RCI Crew members pushed all RCI cases along single lane plywood roads, at times lifting and maneuvering through sand to get to Stage and House positions.

The second challenge to a setup in this location is limited lighting, particularly as evening approaches and natural lighting declines. Moreover, with separate tents, vendor booths and a variety of events around the beach RCI Systems needed to create both ambient and focused lighting around the entire event location. To accomplish this, RCI built a number of upright lighting trees throughout the area with a mixture of 300W Par Cans, Source Fours and a large variety of similar LED Par Cans. RCI also ran string lighting along all walkways, illuminating paths to tents, bars, seating areas, restrooms and main concert areas.

Finally, with a particular emphasis on energy efficiency, RCI used a number of LED event lighting options to both illuminate the stage during the concert and illuminate the various areas around the venue.